U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,871,072, 3,874,077 and 3,891,013 disclose and claim an apparatus for precisely positioning the end portions of each of a plurality of wires at spaced apart locations in preparation for attachment of terminals to the wires. U.S. Pat. No. 3,871,072 particularly discloses an apparatus having associated with the wire positioning means a crimping means for securing the precisely positioned wires to terminals.
In accordance with one aspect of the instant invention, an improved apparatus is provided which has wire positioning means as disclosed in the above-identified U.S. Patents in combination with wire insertion means for inserting wires into the wire receiving portions of contact terminals which are contained in an electrical connector or the like. The wire-positioning means comprises a templet plate having slots extending inwardly from one edge thereof and extending completely through a plate between oppositely directed surfaces thereof. When the wires are located adjacent to the one edge and rolled over or pressed against, and over, one surface of the plate, the wires locate themselves in the slots. Thereafter, an insertion means moves into the slots and inserts end portions of the wires in the wire receiving portions of terminals which are contained in a connector which is against the opposite surface of the templet plate. In accordance with this aspect of the invention, each wire of a plurality of wires can be precisely located and inserted into the terminals in a connector even though the terminals are not spaced apart by uniform distances.
In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a feed shuttle means for feeding wires along a predetermined path to the templet plate which is briefly described above. A second insertion apparatus is provided on this feed path so that the feed wires which have been inserted into one connector located beneath the templet plate can be also inserted into a second connector which is remote from the templet plate. An apparatus in accordance with this aspect of the invention is thus capable of producing electrical harnesses having two or more connectors and wires extending between the terminals in the connectors.
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide an improved harness making apparatus. A further object is to provide an apparatus for inserting the ends of wires into terminals in an electrical connector. A further object is to provide an apparatus capable of inserting wires into non-uniformly spaced terminals in a connector. A further object is to provide and disclose wire handling principles which can be used under a wide variety of circumstances in the harness manufacturing industry; for example, in the design of specialized harnesses making machines for producing harnesses at a rapid rate and at low cost.